Interpretation of the Scaling Law of Fracture of Quasi-Brittle Materials Using Singular Fractal Functions

Bhattacharya, GS and Raghuprasad, BK
(1996)
Interpretation of the Scaling Law of Fracture of Quasi-Brittle Materials Using Singular Fractal Functions.
In: International Journal of Fracture, 82
(4).
R73-R77.

Abstract

As the volume of a structure increases, its nominal strength across the cross-sectional area decreases. Earlier this scaling law in mechanics of failure was explained [6] on the basis of randomness of material strength. However, in case of quasi-brittle materials like concrete, the release of the stored elastic energy has significant influence on the nominal strength of the structure. Under application of external load, the rate of energy release from a larger structure is larger than from a small one [1,4].